Thread "Group 9 - subs interviews elektro of Negligence, Psych Ward and Bad Apple!" in forum "Interviews"

Posted at 12:08AM, Aug. 17, 2009

This interview is of elektro, whose comics are: Negligence, Psych Ward and Bad Apple!
(interview conducted by subs!)

-first fill us in with some mentionable background details from your life i supose

My real name is Tony Kinnard. I am 22 years old, a recent college graduate with a B.A. in Illustration, and a life-long resident of Burlington Wisconsin. Besides comics, I have done some amateur voice-acting and was also a college DJ. My favorite music is metal, especially the freaky bizarre stuff from Asia, and I am a big fan of George Carlin and Penn and Teller, because not only do they make one laugh, they also make one think.

-how did end up doin comics in the first place?

I used to read some comic books, but mostly comic strips. Not only that, but, believe it or not, I used to draw Sonic the Hedgehog fan-art. Thankfully, that was when I was ten, and that phase has long since passed, so no "Sonic on Tails" action from me.

-i always want to know how everybody create theire comic. in
what order it goes for you? idea, script, drawings?
for me its usually drawings, then script and finialy the idea:P

Usually it starts with an idea. For example, with Negligence, it starts with a very short description of the storyline, like "Lizzep gets a bicycle, becomes a biker chick". From there, I work on the rough layout and script of the storyline, then later on I work on the actual comics themselves.

-so i see u have done this comic thing atleast 4 years. how would u describe your progress from the first pic u did up to the last one?

Actually, I have been doing comics for a lot longer than four years. I've been doing comics in some shape or form since I was nine years old, but I first got published in a college newspaper four years ago. Anyway, to answer the question, I personally think I have greatly improved since the very early comics I did. I actually look at some of them now and again and they look so alien to me, like someone else made them and not me. I've gotten better at writing, pacing, and especially drawing, but I know that there is always some room for improvement.

-in your own mind what u think your doing rigth and what are your doing wrong with your comic?

One thing I think is being done right with Negligence is giving the characters some personality and 3-dimensionality, something I've always had trouble doing in the past. What I think I'm doing wrong, besides perspective (which I'm still working on getting right), is sometimes the stories get too serious for their own good. This will be especially evident once the later installments go live. I should note that even though about 145-146 pages are live now, there are actually well over 230 uploaded, and I still upload more when I get the chance. Yeah, I'm a work-a-holic on this comic.

-if i was a person who wouldnt give a rats ass about comics, what or how would u convince me to go and read some and specialy yours?

This is actually a very tough question. I guess the best solution is to show several different comics over several different genres to someone and see if one clicks with them. A good example for me is: I hate almost all newspaper comics nowadays, but every once in a while I find at least one of those funny, like Pearls Before Swine or Lio. Of course, that's just me. Some people hate those comics, and that's fine. Also, it helps to never judge an entire body of work on one comic, as I know Pearls has some clunkers once in a while. As for my comic, all I can hope for is that people pay attention to it and like it. I'm not out to be the biggest cartoonist of all time, though that would be nice, as I'd never have to do real work again. Hooray!

-you mentioned about animated series about negligence!? tell me more..

Yes, it's true: Negligence Animated is in development as I type. Since I'm not much of an animator, I had a few friends help out with the actual animating and such. Currently, the animatic is nearing completion. Right now, the only episode we've worked on is the pilot, but we may make more depending on the popularity. The pilot is based on the first seven Negligence strips I did, which introduced the cast. What I want to try to do with it is differentiate the series from the strip yet still have enough in common so that readers of one and viewers of another can switch over and not get lost in the transition. Basically, it's like what was done with the old Peanuts specials or the Boondocks now.

-if u were given 10000$ that u can only spend on improving your comic, how would u spend it?

I'd get at least one assistant with the writing, as I try my best, but sometimes it's hard to come up with ideas for this comic. Also, a colorist and letterer, because: A) My handwriting sucks and computer text looks cheap, and I would like to have more full color comics, but I hate coloring because it's tedious plus I'm colorblind.

-what do u think, which one is more important: quality or quantity? and why?

I think quality is way more important than anything, because if a comic has been around for many years but isn't worth a shit, why should I read it? Calvin and Hobbes was only around for ten years, a drop in the bucket for newspaper strips, yet is considered by many (including me) to be a pinnacle of comic strips. Meanwhile, Family Circus has been around for much longer yet completely sucked since day one. I know it's an internet cliche to rip on the Family Circus, but I think everyone knows it deserves it.

Thank you for these questions.

Posted at 8:08AM, Aug. 18, 2009

Very interesting. I used to draw Sonic all the time as well, and thankfully I got past that. The 2D games are my favourite imo. The questions were good, and the question that really got my attention was the quality or quantity question. As much as I like to make good jokes and drawings, I prefer to update daily because many comics update usually 1-5 times a week. What are the viewers gonna read on days where the other comics they read isn't being updated on that day?… Anyways.
Good interview, and very good questions!

Posted at 5:08AM, Aug. 19, 2009

I liked your idea for animating your comic.
I'm thinking of doing just the opposite.
Thinking about doing some strips of my animations, though they
aren't exactly comic form.

Posted at 6:08PM, Aug. 22, 2009

Thanks for the comments, y'all.